So. Yesterday. I go to mom and dad’s. I get my brother’s bike down (hanging high in the garage). I’m sure this was a sight in and of itself because no one was around to help me. I filled the tires with dad’s air pump, got the thing in the car and drove home. I’ve been wanting to get the bike and ride for quite some time, but it’s just always seemed like such an effort, and I’ve been short on time. But not yesterday. The lazy, 80-degree, sunny Saturday provided a perfect opportunity.
I take off from home on the bike. And it's true, I think...one never forgets how to ride a bike. I haven't been on two wheels in forever, but I can do it just fine! My legs know what to do. Things are going swimmingly, and I’m thinking, wow, I can see how Lance Armstrong really likes this, and how one of my dear friends has gotten hooked on this and rides a bajillion miles everywhere. I start making a mental list of all the things I should really go out and buy because, by golly, in my quest to become more “green” and granola, riding my bike everywhere is tops on the list. I need a bike lock, my own air pump, probably some nifty sandals of some sort. Hm. Where could I get those? REI maybe summer clearance? Sports Authority? I should watch in tomorrow’s paper, I think. I mean, I’m going to become a veritable cyclist! It’s going to be great.
All this before I had even left my neighborhood.
I’m about 10 minutes in when I realize that this bike is actually not the smoothest thing ever. In fact, it’s actually kind of a rough ride, even on smooth terrain. And I see that my back tire is probably 75 percent flat. No way. No way am I aborting my maiden biking voyage already. I mean, I've already got a good hour and a half into making this bike ride possible, not to mention a bruise on my thigh from getting the thing down from the garage. These tires are thick. This shouldn’t really be a problem, and I don’t weigh a ton. They look like all-terrain tires. Nevertheless, I stop, hop off and squeeze the back tire, acting like I know what I’m checking for. Well, maybe I should abort. I don’t know. I just filled these things, so why is it almost flat already? I wish my cycling friend was around, so I could ask his advice. What should i do? But I decided I’d go a bit further and see what happens.
I hop back on and keep going. I cross 81 and leave suburb land. Or at least, that’s what it feels like because suddenly I’m in the midst of horses and cornfields, and I hop on a path that could take me miles and miles and miles depending on which way I go. I’m cruising along pretending like my tire is not flat, and suddenly I get passed by a very large man on a bike with the skinniest tires I’ve ever seen. How strange. I’m skinny and on a bike with massively wide tires. He's the opposite. How does that work?! Why is he passing me? Another biker cruises by me going the other direction. He’s wearing a fancy schmancy helmet. Hm. Is that a must? Is that a rule? Should I be wearing a helmet? Should that be on my biking list of things to get? I wonder where he got his. He was also wearing a biking jersey, like one that Lance Armstrong is probably wearing right now during the Tour de France. Why is he wearing that while he rides around the outskirts of Maple Grove I wonder? To look cool? Or maybe that’s just what all really-cool bikers wear. Well, that is something I won’t be getting. Ever. I continue on my merry way and realize that maybe if I stand and pedal, there’s less weight on the back flat tire. That’s probably a good thing. So I decide to stand a bit more every now and then.
"On your left," I hear from behind me. Somebody's passing me.
"Left," another someone passes me. They're all on skinny-tire bikes going very fast. And they're all male, and not all fat. Maybe i should bike more often, I think! Why haven't i done this sooner?!
"To your left."
About 45 minutes in, I realize I have no idea where I’m going. I’m in a massive park reserve and I’ve just been going, going, whichever direction I’ve felt like going, lost in my biking thoughts. So, at the next path intersection, I stop. Hop off. Once again, feel my back tire—yup, still flat—I get a swig of water (because of course I have a water bottle attached to my bike!). I begin to study the provided map on the side of the path. Um. I am nowhere near where I thought I was. And as I stand there trying to figure out which direction the you-are-here arrow is really pointing, other bikers are speedily zooming by, knowing exactly where they’re going. I think to myself…I should pretend like I’m not really studying the map quizzically. Merely just stopping for some water, except maybe legitimate bikers don’t actually stop for water. They can drink and drive. Sigh. I’m just not a cool biker yet, but it’ll come. I hop back on my bike and continue on, knowing that I need to take a left at the next fork in the path in order to get home some time that day.
I’m tired now though. I’ve got the gears set so that I’m actually working most of the time. My legs are getting a work out, and I don’t think the flat tire is making it any easier! I'm sweating and decide I can cut my planned 6-mile run to 3 miles for that afternoon. As I hit a flat stretch of path, I look down and begin studying my bike. Hm. What kind of bike is this exactly, I wonder? It's hunter green. A little dusty. Has a nice little attached pouch for my phone and keys. I wonder about the difference between the seven gears on the right handlebar versus the three on the left. It says “Scorpio” in black and silver letters on one of the bars. I realize that it’s probably like the “Faded Glory” clothing brand from Wal-Mart, or “Sonoma” from Kohl’s. The off brand. A wave of self-consciousness rolled in. What are the other bikers thinking of me? Look at the girl, not wearing a helmet, riding a flat-tired Scorpio! And she has no idea where she’s going?! Plus, everybody else was wearing sunglasses. I didn’t wear my sunglasses. Next time.
Well, I made it home, flat tire and all. And quite honestly, it was tons of fun, and I’m looking forward to more biking. I was reminded of how great it is to do something new and different, something you're a little unsure of. Something in which you need to learn a few things. Get a few pointers.
And I did, in fact, pick up a bike lock (because someone definitely would want to steal my Scorpio!). So, wave if you see me on the road. I'm on the flat-tired Scorpio.
No comments:
Post a Comment